Ranking The 5 Democratic Candidates By Net Worth To See Who's Swimming In Money & Who's Not

In the interest of transparency, presidential candidates have to disclose their person financial information, which means the net worth of the Democratic presidential candidates is readily available to the public. There is over 100 years of combined experience in public service between the five candidates, but you also have to wonder how much money is represented in that pool.

The Democratic party generally campaigns for financial equality, and that policy is pretty well represented in its potential nominees. Three out of the five candidates (60 percent) qualify as the top one percent, meaning they have a net worth over $1.2 million. Compared to the eight out of the 10 Republican frontrunners (80 percent) who are one-percenters, the party seems to be practicing what it preaches. The Democratic debaters definitely aren't poor, but it's reassuring to see that an inflated bank account isn't a prerequisite to being a presidential candidate.

CNN released the podium order for Tuesday's debate Sunday morning. From stage right to stage left, the debaters are former Secretary of the Navy Jim Webb, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former governor of Maryland and current rock star Martin O'Malley, and former governor of Rhode Island Lincoln Chaffee. Take a look at how much each politician has in savings.

2) Lincoln Chafee

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Chafee's financial disclosure report was released in July, divulging a net worth of a whopping $31.9 million. But the lion's share of the wealth is contained in a trust owned by his wife, Stephanie Birney Chafee, whose family founded the Rhode Island School of Design in 1877, and who donated $1.3 million to Chafee's 2012 gubernatorial campaign.

5) Martin O'Malley

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The Celtic rock band frontman is another 99-percenter — O'Malley's maximum net worth is only $256,000, paltry compared to Clinton or Webb. He has some hefty loans to repay from his daughters' college education, but he's earning a few thousand dollars from the occasional speaking fee and two pensions (one from his time as a city council member and mayor in Baltimore, and then another from his two terms as governor).

Bonus: Joe Biden

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Biden's future in the 2016 race is extremely uncertain, but CNN is prepared for the possibility that Biden will announce his candidacy before Tuesday. Just in case, I'll include him in this list. Biden's net worth is estimated at $500,000. Definitely not enough to bankroll his own campaign like Trump or Chafee. But of course, it's likely that Biden won't be campaigning anyway.

Personal wealth shouldn't be necessary to a campaign, but it's often a limiting factor because of all of the associated costs of running for president. Financial equality in politics is important because, just like race and gender, there shouldn't be just one type of person representing the entire country.